We got sucked into the DIE RPG with author Kieron Gillen and game designer Grant Howitt

We got sucked into the DIE RPG with author Kieron Gillen and game designer Grant Howitt

What if your RPG game became real? If you and your friends were sucked into a twisted version of your weekly session with manifestations of your personal fears and doubts alongside real dangers from dragons to demons? Well, that’s the premise of DIE, a thrilling comic series written by Kieron Gillen and brought to life with stunning art from Stephanie Hans. It’s a gothic love letter to tabletop gaming and the very real emotions it stirs in us when playing. We’ve all felt tears prickle our eyes when a beloved party member dies, recounted a dramatic fight as if we were really there, or grown closer to the people we adventure with every week, even if we only interact through fantasy characters. RPGs can be a way to work through your very real feelings and DIE leans into that.

So while the comics have resonated with people who love tabletop gaming for a while, we can now experience the adventure ourselves through the RPG funding on Kickstarter. Kieron Gillen is working alongside designer Grant Howitt - creator of Spire, Heart, Honey Heist and many more - to turn the comic into a playable experience, which Liv and I from the video team were lucky enough to try out.

We were a group of flawed adults, who once bonded over an RPG together as teens, reuniting for a new mysterious game - which obviously goes wrong when they’re transported to a strange land made up of both their deepest insecurities and fond memories of the childhood game. DIE: The Roleplaying Game is carefully developed to foster creativity so you can easily piece together a world and characters in minutes. So, when we were sucked into the game’s universe as these new characters, we were truly scared of the consequences, of what we faced, and had real reasons to resist and embrace our powers. Plus those powers are where DIE really shines like the pretty dice it features. The personas you pick riff on classic fantasy roles but are twisted to feel incredibly refreshing for anyone who’s played a good few bards in their time. I had an incredible time as the Godbinder making deals with deities and facing the consequences with a ritual knife in hand.

So if you’re interested in a darker RPG with a glimmer of hope at its heart, throwing yourself into weird and wonderful new roles, and telling an emotional story you’ll never forget, check out our actual play GMed by Kieron himself with Grant joining the players.

If you love RPGs and want to discover more, or get some brilliant tips for running your own, head over to the Dicebreaker YouTube channel. You’ll also find a ton of other videos on all things tabletop gaming from board games to trading cards games, miniatures and more.